Preview — Out of Left Field
by Kris Hui Lee

Out of Left Field

There’s no playing it safe in love or baseball in this sparkling debut, perfect for fans of Morgan Matson and Kasie West.

Marnie has never had a hard time fitting in with the guys. It would take a lot more than their goofy antics to keep her from joining them at the neighborhood sandlot to do what she loves best: play ball.

An added perk of hanging out at the sandlot? SpendiThere’s no playing it safe in love or baseball in this sparkling debut, perfect for fans of Morgan Matson and Kasie West.

Marnie has never had a hard time fitting in with the guys. It would take a lot more than their goofy antics to keep her from joining them at the neighborhood sandlot to do what she loves best: play ball.

An added perk of hanging out at the sandlot? Spending time with Cody Kinski, their high school’s star pitcher and Marnie’s best friend. Sure, he can be stubborn and annoying. He also knows how to make her laugh and respects her skills on the mound. And when he gets nailed in the arm by a bone-fracturing pitch, Marnie becomes the team’s best chance at making it to the playoffs. Except no one told the guys they’re supposed to be on her side.

With her own team against her, Marnie begins questioning her abilities. And when fate throws her a curveball, can she play without losing the game, Cody, and her belief in herself?...more

Friend Reviews

Reader Q&A

This question contains spoilers…
(view spoiler)[They were tied in the last game!!!! Why did the author or editor not see the mistake. You said Joey brought in a run and then the other team got one, then Carrot got revenge by getting a home run and then the other team got a run when Prescott hit her. They WERE TIED 2-2! I don't know why this is bothering me so much but it sucks that from one page to the next the story changed. WHY? Did anyone else notice this? (hide spoiler)]

Community Reviews

ARC provided by Edelweiss and Sourcebooks Fire in exchange for an honest review

You could say I'm a sucker for cute, lighthearted reads. Thankfully, this one did not disappoint.

In this book, we follow Marnie, a girl who loves baseball but feels she might fail as an official player. When Cody (star pitcher of their school's team and Marnie's best friend) gets injured, it's up to Marnie to step up and lead the team to victory.

To say I really liked this is an understatement. I love the FRATING: 4/5

ARC provided by Edelweiss and Sourcebooks Fire in exchange for an honest review

You could say I'm a sucker for cute, lighthearted reads. Thankfully, this one did not disappoint.

In this book, we follow Marnie, a girl who loves baseball but feels she might fail as an official player. When Cody (star pitcher of their school's team and Marnie's best friend) gets injured, it's up to Marnie to step up and lead the team to victory.

To say I really liked this is an understatement. I love the Friends-to-lovers trope so this was right up my alley. All the cuteness made my heart melt! It reminded me of Kasie West's books, all of which I've adored. Definitely recommend!...more

1. Lots of mindless reading. Out of Left Field definitely doesn't have a lot of substance. It's incredibly shallow and typical--which was fine by me! Y'all have to admit: We have these certain moods where we just want a fun read that doesn't require any thinking! This was definitely one of those books.

2. A best-friends-turned-lovers trope à la cheesy local rom-com. AGAIN I WAS TOTALLY FINE WITH THIS!!! Best friend rFind this review and more on my book blog.

WHAT TO EXPECT FROM OUT OF LEFT FIELD

1. Lots of mindless reading. Out of Left Field definitely doesn't have a lot of substance. It's incredibly shallow and typical--which was fine by me! Y'all have to admit: We have these certain moods where we just want a fun read that doesn't require any thinking! This was definitely one of those books.

2. A best-friends-turned-lovers trope à la cheesy local rom-com. AGAIN I WAS TOTALLY FINE WITH THIS!!! Best friend romances (with lots of angst and denial in between) are my guilty pleasure, and the one in Out of Left Field was cute and genuine.

3. Awesome non-romantic relationships. Marnie had a positive and empowering friendship with her girl-BFF Sara. She also had a supportive dad, a mother who doesn't know what to think, and a brother who stands up for what he believes in. I thought the relationships were pretty realistic!

4. Baseball talk! This is something I'm not familiar with, but I love sports in contemporary YA.

5. You'll either love it or hate it. Like I said earlier, this book doesn't really have a lot of Substance™, but it really depends on the reader's preferences!...more

I loved the idea of a girl playing on the boys team and the hint of a bff to more sold it.

I liked Marnie well enough. She’s tenacious and talented and stands up for herself. The rest of her friends and their dynamic was quite odd. I struggled with how they could be supportive of Marnie’s pitching when they played on the weekends, but after winning the spot on the school team, the same people she’s known since kindergarten now ignore her.

Plot wise it did get repetitive. There was a lot of telliI loved the idea of a girl playing on the boys team and the hint of a bff to more sold it.

I liked Marnie well enough. She’s tenacious and talented and stands up for herself. The rest of her friends and their dynamic was quite odd. I struggled with how they could be supportive of Marnie’s pitching when they played on the weekends, but after winning the spot on the school team, the same people she’s known since kindergarten now ignore her.

Plot wise it did get repetitive. There was a lot of telling and not showing, especially during scenes of the games. It felt like some threads of the story were thrown in for fun, as they didn’t really provide substance to the story.

Overall, it was a quick read and had a lot of potential. Sadly, the execution just didn’t work for me.

**Huge thanks to Sourcebooks Fire for providing the arc free of charge** ...more

This was pretty cute, but not my favorite contemporary! It had the friends-to-lovers trope so you know i'm in.I also loved that it featured a female lead breaking the glass ceiling a bit with playing on the guys baseball team and OWNING IT.I think where I didn't end up liking this is the miscommunication and back and forth of the relationship. It honestly didn't seem very healthy, even though they came around in the end.Overall a quick, fun, fluff contemporary but not the best!

This was such a cute book! If you like your contemporary YA on the sweet and light side, with a fun cast of characters and an underdog MC, "Out of Left Field" is a great choice for you.

So here are a few of the things that stood out for me with this book:I really liked how Marnie and her friend Sara hung out with the boys and weren't super girly. It reminded me of the group of guys I hung out with in high school - we had so much fun! We were always going swimming or cliff jumping at a lake, or 4xThis was such a cute book! If you like your contemporary YA on the sweet and light side, with a fun cast of characters and an underdog MC, "Out of Left Field" is a great choice for you.

So here are a few of the things that stood out for me with this book:I really liked how Marnie and her friend Sara hung out with the boys and weren't super girly. It reminded me of the group of guys I hung out with in high school - we had so much fun! We were always going swimming or cliff jumping at a lake, or 4x4ing through the mud, or rock climbing without any gear (stupid, yes, but it was the 90's and we didn't know any better!) Even going to Subway or the movies was an adventure with those guys, and reading "Out of Left Field" brought out some of that nostalgia.I liked that Colby and the baseball coach had Marnie's back, even when her teammates didn't accept her and she doubted herself and her abilities.There were some good platonic relationships represented here, which I haven't seen often in YA contemporary romance novels. I especially enjoyed the developing friendship between Marnie and one of her biggest rivals!I also appreciated the relationships Marnie had with the members of her family. There were a few warm and fuzzy moments between Marnie and her mom, for example, that did their job tugging on my heartstrings.

How about the things I didn't love?

The romance was kind of...meh. I usually love the best-friends-to-more trope, but in this case, the first 10 or 11 years of Marnie and Colby's friendship happened off-page, so there was none of that usual slow burn development I love. Basically, Marnie tells us in Chapter One that she and Colby have been best friends for x number of years, but we're not given much from those years. Maybe a couple of anecdotes here and there, but as far as show and tell, this book was very skewed towards telling with minimal showing. I thought the coach's language could have been toned down a bit. I thought his use of profanity was unwarranted and unprofessional. I know I sound like a total mom here, but honestly, if a coach was speaking like that around my kids, he wouldn't be coaching much longer, if you know what I mean.

Overall, I enjoyed my time with "Out of Left Field". For a debut, it was really well done, and I think that Kris Hui Lee is a name to watch for in the future of Contemporary YA. ...more

Out of Left Field was a charming, lovable, and fun contemporary romance novel!

The main character, Marnie, was a strong and determined girl! There were so many times when people tried to tear her down, and she always stood up for herself. I loved how fierce she was and how she continued to show she was just as valuable and useful as any guy! Marnie's best friend, Sara, was such a supportive friend to Marnie. Their friendship was so positive and sweet, which warmed my heart. I was so happy that thOut of Left Field was a charming, lovable, and fun contemporary romance novel!

The main character, Marnie, was a strong and determined girl! There were so many times when people tried to tear her down, and she always stood up for herself. I loved how fierce she was and how she continued to show she was just as valuable and useful as any guy! Marnie's best friend, Sara, was such a supportive friend to Marnie. Their friendship was so positive and sweet, which warmed my heart. I was so happy that there was a strong female friendship represent throughout this book. It was refreshing to see two girls build each other up instead drag each other down.

Cody, the romantic interest, was another supportive and kind character. He was someone that always believed in Marnie and wanted to see her succeed. The romantic relationship between Cody and Marnie developed at a believable pace and they had sweet moments. However, I wish Cody would have been more present in the book. I felt like their relationship had a lot of "telling" instead of "showing". It was constantly discussed how much they cared for each other and how strong their relationship was, but I was hoping to actually see more of that. I still thought they had a cute romance, but I think it would have been even more impactful if they had more scenes that showed their relationship.

Overall, I found this to be a quick and romantic read about high school, baseball, and relationships. If you are looking for a summer romance novel, I would recommend checking this book out!

I honestly think out of left field is shaping up to be my favourite kindle read of the month, I can't believe that this is the authors debut novel.

It was utterly amazing and so realistically written, I felt like It could've involved any of my friends and family. A very relatable novel full of unconditional love and believing in yourself even when there are differences to other peers.

I can't wait to see what this author writes next!!

Thank you to netgalley and the publish for letting me review tI honestly think out of left field is shaping up to be my favourite kindle read of the month, I can't believe that this is the authors debut novel.

It was utterly amazing and so realistically written, I felt like It could've involved any of my friends and family. A very relatable novel full of unconditional love and believing in yourself even when there are differences to other peers.

I can't wait to see what this author writes next!!

Thank you to netgalley and the publish for letting me review this title for my honest opinion!! ...more

so I finished this book in an airplane after postponding reading it so many times .. it was just so boring and nothing was happening ..the book is about a tomboy Marnie who loves baseball and has a huge crush on her chilhood friend Cody .. the concept is nice but the plot was really slow and we were just hearing Marnie's non-stop whining .. and the ending was so disappointing and wasn't worth it at all .. this was just a complete waste of time to me

This was a fun fast read about a girl who wants to play baseball. There was definitely some fighting among the team after she joined but it wasn't the focus of the book like the blurb claims. It was mainly a cute rom-com and a girl trying to figure out what she wants to do in her friendships. I did enjoy the story but there were also small, like tiny, consistence issues I doubt anyone else will notice. I think it's more of a editing thing than story and I only noticed because I've sat at work anThis was a fun fast read about a girl who wants to play baseball. There was definitely some fighting among the team after she joined but it wasn't the focus of the book like the blurb claims. It was mainly a cute rom-com and a girl trying to figure out what she wants to do in her friendships. I did enjoy the story but there were also small, like tiny, consistence issues I doubt anyone else will notice. I think it's more of a editing thing than story and I only noticed because I've sat at work and read it in one sitting. ...more

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

I was really looking forward to this book. I love sports romances, YA, and friends to lovers trope, so I thought this would be a hit with me. Unfortunately, I DNF at 35%. I can usually get through a book within a 24 hour period, but it took me almost 5 days, and I could only get to Chapter 9 before I finally gave up. The writing was pretty good. But, I found the characters extremely unlikable, espI voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

I was really looking forward to this book. I love sports romances, YA, and friends to lovers trope, so I thought this would be a hit with me. Unfortunately, I DNF at 35%. I can usually get through a book within a 24 hour period, but it took me almost 5 days, and I could only get to Chapter 9 before I finally gave up. The writing was pretty good. But, I found the characters extremely unlikable, especially the main character, Marnie. All the characters were pretty nasty to each other, and I never really found out why there was so much animosity towards each other. Ultimately, I just could not connect with the characters and could not finish the book....more

Out of Left Field by Kris Hui Lee is a lighthearted and charming YA contemporary read!

I’m not really into sports that much, so I don’t find myself immediately drawn to sports-themed books. I just never really know if I’ll enjoy the plot since I don’t do sports at all and most likely wouldn’t be able to relate to the characters. But, I do love romance and friends-to-lovers stories. The premise for Out of the Left Field also sounded really cute and fun, so I4 Stars - Cute, fun and entertaining.

Out of Left Field by Kris Hui Lee is a lighthearted and charming YA contemporary read!

I’m not really into sports that much, so I don’t find myself immediately drawn to sports-themed books. I just never really know if I’ll enjoy the plot since I don’t do sports at all and most likely wouldn’t be able to relate to the characters. But, I do love romance and friends-to-lovers stories. The premise for Out of the Left Field also sounded really cute and fun, so I figured why not. Well, I definitely do not regret requesting. This book was heartwarming, sweet, and so cute it made my heart melt. I loved the friendships, the MC chasing her dream no matter what, and of course the romance. I thought the writing was decent, but wished there were more scenes that actually showed me rather than telling me this or that. The characters were likeable to some extent. They’re teenagers after all, so it’s expected that they got on my nerves every now and then. While I did find some parts a bit repetitive and frustrating, I still really enjoyed the story.

I liked Marnie well enough. She was the typical angsty teenager trying to find her place and go after her dream. She obviously did not always make the right decisions and had her own insecurities, but she was also strong and fierce. I admired her talent, determination, and the way she always stood up for herself. Cody was absolutely adorable and I really liked him a lot. He was sweet and incredibly supportive of Marnie. He encouraged her and truly believed in her potential. I really wish there were more scenes with him in the book. I would have loved to see Cody and Marnie interact more, rather than have the other characters describe how they really felt for each other.

So, as you can guess, the romance was relatively slow, but it was totally cute and heartwarming. I love romance in general, so whether it’s insta-love or not, as long as the story works and it makes some sense to me, then I usually have fun with it. I definitely did with this one and enjoyed the tension. I thought the story wrapped up nicely and I turned off my kindle with a smile on my face.

There were some things that could have been better, but overall, Out of the Left Field was a delightful debut novel. With cute moments, fun bantering, and adorable romance, this was just the fluffy lighthearted read I needed. I’ll definitely be on the lookout for Kris Hui Lee’s future works and would recommend this book to anyone in the mood of something quick, sweet and entertaining.

I received an advance reader copy from the publisher, Sourcebooks Fire, via Netgalley in exchange for a fair and honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

This book was actually really good! I can't be happier about the fact that I actually enjoyed this, because this book despite not having my typical first choice-romance-trope of hate-love relationship, I was surprised by how much I was invested (and ship) Marnie and Cody (damn Cody's hot).

The storyline was also really fun, and as a baseball player, I really appreciate the descriptive and extremely real description and wiring regarding baseball as a sI received a free copy for an honest review.

This book was actually really good! I can't be happier about the fact that I actually enjoyed this, because this book despite not having my typical first choice-romance-trope of hate-love relationship, I was surprised by how much I was invested (and ship) Marnie and Cody (damn Cody's hot).

The storyline was also really fun, and as a baseball player, I really appreciate the descriptive and extremely real description and wiring regarding baseball as a sport, as well as how I didn't get the vibe that the "sports" story-line is just a side story to set up only the romance, and have a really good place of honor in this book as well.

I really like Marnie as a character. Despite still being very iron-wield and strong, she was not overly strong (to the point of just being annoying) like I see a lot fo yA books. She's not over the top, she's a respectable character that does know how to hold back her anger, therefore making her a lot more toleratable.

The romance between her and Cody also has some really good chemistry. The author was also very smart to not do the annoying "miscommunication" BS that usually happens in cheaply-written contemporary books in order to make extremely unnecessary drama. The reasons why Cody and Marnie didn't get together until the end of fight ebook was very understandable and reasonable, so this added on to why I liked Marnie so much.

However, the story does have a few very recognizable cliche trope scenes (but thankfully was not so bad it ruined my entire reading experience), and the story ended...kind of lazily. The story was generally really fun to read, but the quality wise I feel like it is kind of water down. There are also a lot of unfinished arcs regarding character and story-line that does not feel appropriate to be left open like that, so I'm going to for now assume there is going to be a sequel (because otherwise, that would just be...why would you do that. Like, why. That would truly be extremely lazy). The character development was also one of the weakest factors of this story. Especially where the synopsis indicates that Marnie would have to grow a lot to step up to the challenge, but ultimately the book ended literally with me feeling "wait, what?", instead of a true sense of closure. She still blamed herself at the end of the book, so maybe instead of ending the book with a makeout session, we can re-emphasize her self-realization of her reflecting upon herself as a pitcher instead of...that. Yeah, I was expecting a lot more, that was not enough to complete the character arc well.

Nevertheless, this book may not be a masterpiece, it still is very enjoyable especially when you're just looking for an easygoing entertaining read.

Out of Left Field is a lighthearted, sport-adoring, lots-of-fun novel that revels in the celebration of strong friendship, pushing the boundaries, and finding the courage to chase your dream. I highly enjoying reading Out of Left Field, and highly recommend it to readers who love playful, sport-centred YA contemporary.

Marnie loves playing baseball with her friends in the neighbourhood park. She loves baseball. But after an incident while pitching for the softball team, Marnie only plays for funOut of Left Field is a lighthearted, sport-adoring, lots-of-fun novel that revels in the celebration of strong friendship, pushing the boundaries, and finding the courage to chase your dream. I highly enjoying reading Out of Left Field, and highly recommend it to readers who love playful, sport-centred YA contemporary.

Marnie loves playing baseball with her friends in the neighbourhood park. She loves baseball. But after an incident while pitching for the softball team, Marnie only plays for fun and not competitively. Until, when her best-friend, Cody, is injured, the opportunity arises for her to take his spot as the pitcher on the boy’s baseball team. Trying out for the position challenges Marnie’s faith in herself, her friendships with the other boys on the team, and her relationship (friendship that has the possibility to become so much more) with Cody.

I do so love sport fiction. I especially love fiction centred around women in sport. And I adore stories where women get to challenge the guys by stepping up to the boys’ teams. Out of Left Field totally ticks all those boxes. The style of the book reminds me of Miranda Kenneally’s Hundred Oaks series, with the same balance between sport, friendship, and romance.

Marnie is a likeable character. She is most comfortable playing with her friends, throwing around insults and lively banter, and trying not to get into too much trouble. I loved that she is a typical teen trying to muddle her way through life. She has a great self-awareness and is quick to acknowledge her flaws, even if she is sometimes reluctant to make the first steps of apology. I also really liked Marnie’s friends, from dog-loving and black-belt karate champ Sara to the other guys on the baseball team. And then there is Cody. Theirs is a relationship I could totally support, and I loved watching Cody and Marnie struggle with the blurring lines of their friendship. Should they risk their history for a chance at a romantic relationship? Does the other share their growing feelings? So much fun.

Diverse characters, a strong but simple storyline, and the perfect balance between baseball, friendship, and romance. Out of Left Field is easy to highly recommend.

The publishers provided an advanced readers copy of this book for reviewing purposes. All opinions are my own.

The emphasis here--as it really should be in YA--is more on Marnie figuring herself and her place in her world (with her family and friends, on the baseball team, what direction she wants her future to go in) and less on romance--though Marnie and Cody dance around things for the entire book, they don't really get around their we-might-ruin-our-friendship-forever fears until (literally) the last minute.

The emphasis here--as it really should be in YA--is more on Marnie figuring herself and her place in her world (with her family and friends, on the baseball team, what direction she wants her future to go in) and less on romance--though Marnie and Cody dance around things for the entire book, they don't really get around their we-might-ruin-our-friendship-forever fears until (literally) the last minute.

And really, this is fine.

Like Marnie's mom, I have no great love for baseball, which is Marnie's first and lasting great love, but that's okay. It's easy to identify with a heroine who has found something she's passionate about in life but who still is full of doubts. I've never even considered being the only girl on a boy's team, but who can't remember a time in their lives when they felt like the outsider? Even though I do enjoy wearing dresses (but not shopping for them, because that's just cruel and unusual punishment) I came out of this book somehow feeling like Marnie and I had way more in common than not.

Ms. Lee has apparently spent years writing stories about Marnie and her friends (as per her acknowledgments) and it really shows--it's obvious that Marnie and company have a long, complicated history that the author knows both it and her characters well. Little throwaway comments like, "For reasons that would take too long to explain, his voicemail message is Joey and Sara mooing for about thirty seconds" add both humor and realism to the story.

Out of Left Field is a fun debut from an author I'll definitely be looking for more from!

I received a free copy of this book to read and review for Wicked Reads.

When I started reading Out of Left Field I wasn’t in the mood to read. I had other things I needed to get done. So when I sat down to read I told myself I had to read at least 10% of the book in the first session. I was a third of the way through the book when I stopped reading the first time and I read the whole thing in 24 hours.

I was immediately drawn in to Marnie’s world. She is feisty, quick witted, intelligent, a goodI received a free copy of this book to read and review for Wicked Reads.

When I started reading Out of Left Field I wasn’t in the mood to read. I had other things I needed to get done. So when I sat down to read I told myself I had to read at least 10% of the book in the first session. I was a third of the way through the book when I stopped reading the first time and I read the whole thing in 24 hours.

I was immediately drawn in to Marnie’s world. She is feisty, quick witted, intelligent, a good friend and a lover of baseball. Marnie’s life revolves around her friends Sara, Joey and Cody (who is also the love interest). When, Cody, the star pitcher for the high school baseball team is injured, Marnie tries out for the team to replace him.

As a sports fan I often find sports romances don’t actually feature much of the actual sport. But in Out of Left Field baseball in one of the key features of the story. I could feel the love Marnie has for the sport and I got caught up in the fun of the game, the comradery of being part of a team and the highs and lows of playing team sport.

This is also a young adult book full of teenage drama but it never felt heavy or over the top. The will they or won’t they between Marnie and Cody is well done. I loved the relationship between Marnie and Cody and watching her realise that Cody wants to be more than friends and her struggle with her feelings for him.

The author did a great job writing characters and issues that were age appropriate and because the story has no sex or drug use, I would recommend it for readers 13+. Out of Left Field is a really well written, fun, young adult romance and I had a great time reading it.

I love a sports story. This just wasn't the best and wasn't the worst. Decent debut.

(view spoiler)[ Marnie has been around sports her entire life. She is an athlete. She was on a softball team and decided to quit after she gave up the winning run. Her brother taught her everything she knows. She is great friends with two guys that are on the baseball team, Joey and Cody. One day, Cody gets hit by his nemesis. Cody can't continue to pitch in the post season. They need a new pitcher and try outsI love a sports story. This just wasn't the best and wasn't the worst. Decent debut.

(view spoiler)[ Marnie has been around sports her entire life. She is an athlete. She was on a softball team and decided to quit after she gave up the winning run. Her brother taught her everything she knows. She is great friends with two guys that are on the baseball team, Joey and Cody. One day, Cody gets hit by his nemesis. Cody can't continue to pitch in the post season. They need a new pitcher and try outs are held. Marnie decides to try out and makes it. What comes of this? What happens when you find out that you are going to be related to your best friend's nemesis by marriage? (hide spoiler)]...more

2.5 Cocktails I wanted to like this one so much more than I did. Discovering that your best friend has the same feeling for you as you do for him should have been one of those heartwarming, angsty young adult reads. Instead, I found myself not really liking Marnie all that much. She used her attitude as a defense mechanism but often took it to an extreme that made it hard to feel bad for her when something backfired.

So stinking cute. And engrossing. And giddiness-loaded. I loved this. The gang, the writing, the friendships, other familial relationships everything. I dunno why I’m not giving it 5 stars. Maybe because I’m trying to be a little stricter with my ratings.

I picked this book up from the library on a whim and I am so glad I did! “Out of Left Field” is packed full of baseball, friendship, humor and a sprinkle of romance. It was a quick YA novel that was a perfect summer read!

This book was super cute and such a fun read! I absolutely loved it! I loved how their was the sports aspect and how there was the whole family and friends and friends to lovers trope and it was amazing. I’d definatley like to try more books from this author

Rating: 4 stars ★★★★If your looking for a fun, YA sports Contemporary, Out Of Left Field is the perfect read! The unique direction of the plot really makes this book stand out! I really liked it!! Definitely going to be checking out Lee's future novels!!

*I received this book through Netgalley in exchange for an honest review*

I don't read many sports-themed books and when I saw this one on Netgalley I thought I should rectify that. Many people like reading about sports or like the sports aspect with romance, so because this sounded cute and dealt with Baseball, one sport I know decently well, I gave it a try.

I'm glad I requested it because this is quite a cute story. I love how they called where they played baseball with friends the sandlot -- g*I received this book through Netgalley in exchange for an honest review*

I don't read many sports-themed books and when I saw this one on Netgalley I thought I should rectify that. Many people like reading about sports or like the sports aspect with romance, so because this sounded cute and dealt with Baseball, one sport I know decently well, I gave it a try.

I'm glad I requested it because this is quite a cute story. I love how they called where they played baseball with friends the sandlot -- gave me The Sandlot vibes. Heck, the movie was even mentioned! So, I might be a tiny bit biased, since that was one of my fave movies as a little kid. But, back to the book.It is a cute, fun, easy, and quick read.

I really enjoyed reading it, even if I the main character annoyed me. She is so snarky! I usually don't mind, but dang... this was like every word. She didn't show or speak about her sad or confused emotions, instead keeping it bottled up and sassing people instead. Even with her friends, their way of communicating is usually through arguing. Then wonders why people would be intimidated by her -- really? But, she does have problems she's working through that make her feel like a real person. Her interactions with other people don't always make sense to me, but her inner thoughts did.

A great thing about this is that Marnie and her friends don't always talk about romance. They talk about baseball, rivalries, and the future (i.e. after high school plans). Absolutely fantastic! The romance was pushed more into the background and felt more natural, letting Marnie's issue with pitching for a boy's team take center field.

Now, there are a few things you have to suspend your relief for. First, a girl gets to pitch for a guy's team. Professionally, I think the last time this happened was in the '50s and they kicked her out for essentially being too good (striking out Babe Ruth). Second, even in a good neighborhood, I doubt parents are okay with their kids running at midnight in order to help them fall asleep -- or if the parents don't know she really didn't try hard to sneak out so.... *shrugs*. Third, some things that happen with the baseball team and when playing against other teams.

It is a fun story though!! And while I wanted to scream at the characters to just kiss already, (seriously, how can they not tell if they like each other?! It is so obvious!), I thought the wrap-up was cute. I like friends to couple romances too ^_^

Oh! And going back to the talk about the future conversations: I thought it was awesome how Marnie's girl friend brings up how she doesn't want to go to college. This is a thing people need to know they aren't alone about thinking about. And there are other moments when the friends speak about how unsure of their future they are AND THAT IS OKAY! They are Juniors in high school --THAT IS ALLOWED. Not everyone knows what they want to do since they were 5 years old, or has their top colleges picked out by freshman year. Take your time, you;ll figure it out sooner or later. I do wish more time was dedicated to talking about this, but I'm glad there was so time.

Okay, I'll end it here -- I know this is one of my longer reviews ^_^. I will recommend this book to people who want a lighter romance in their contemporary and are interested in baseball. ...more

There were parts of this book I loved and parts that could definitely use some work. I'm a sucker for sports romances, baseball and hockey ones in particular, so this is right up my ally. I thought it was fun and cute for sure! Marnie was a good lead character and her relationship with Cody was sweet. That being said, I think the author tried to cram too much into 300 pages. There were a lot of different plot points happening that ended up feeling like not enough of them3.25/3.5 out of 5.0 stars

There were parts of this book I loved and parts that could definitely use some work. I'm a sucker for sports romances, baseball and hockey ones in particular, so this is right up my ally. I thought it was fun and cute for sure! Marnie was a good lead character and her relationship with Cody was sweet. That being said, I think the author tried to cram too much into 300 pages. There were a lot of different plot points happening that ended up feeling like not enough of them were developed fully by the end.

(view spoiler)[For example, the plots lines that I didn't think had enough development were: Santino and Marnie becoming friends (they spent one afternoon together and then acted like they needed to be besties, even if you're cousins you don't need to be that close...), Marnie's mom not coming to the games and Marnie being upset about it, Cody suddenly deciding he might not want to play baseball anymore (because he loved it to much...?), Marnie just sort of getting over choking from the pressure easily even though she quit softball for it (also in the beginning there was an idea that the coach hated her but that quickly disappeared), Sara not wanting to go to college, and the whole Sara/Joey relationship

And the baseball descriptions didn't quite live up to my expectations. First off, you can't perfect a side arm pitch in one afternoon. Not even if you played softball, it's a completely different throwing motion. The games were a little repetitive, essentially the other teams were hulking jerks and she was super nervous. And then the description of the final game was rough. Unless I'm reading something wrong, I'm pretty sure the author made a mistake on the scoring:

She said Joey scored or batted in a run first: "...after Joey manages to bring in one run, I have feeling the Charing East team is going to up the ante." (p. 268)Then the other team scores: "Charing East scores a run." (p. 269)But somehow the score is 1-0: "The fifth inning ends, and the sixth inning passes, and the score remains one to zer0." (p. 270) (HOW? It should be 1 all)And then in the next paragraph: "In the top of the seventh, Carrot...belting a home run, tying the game one to one." (p. 270) (Nope, according to basically math Marnie's team should be up 2-1)Basically what this boils down to is that technically the dramatic moment at the end should have ended in a tie. Not a loss (hide spoiler)]

Also Joey is a straight up jackass - why was Marnie even friends with him? The way he acted at the end didn't redeem the character for me at all. He's just kind of a little shit.

If you are looking for a cute, fast-paced, sports contemporary, this is a decent one. Not the best I've read, but it's fun and I would read more from this author in the future....more

This was great fun, just the thing I was needing. At times, I had trouble forgetting that it wasn't a Kasie West book, because the author's style is so much like hers- it wasn't always a bad thing, but it wasn't always a good thing either. It doesn't make sense, I know.

I loved Marnie and how realistic and honest she felt as a character. Her voice and her sense of humor were my favorite. I could also really appreciate that part of her character arc devoted to her relationship with her mother, anThis was great fun, just the thing I was needing. At times, I had trouble forgetting that it wasn't a Kasie West book, because the author's style is so much like hers- it wasn't always a bad thing, but it wasn't always a good thing either. It doesn't make sense, I know.

I loved Marnie and how realistic and honest she felt as a character. Her voice and her sense of humor were my favorite. I could also really appreciate that part of her character arc devoted to her relationship with her mother, and that fear that- since their goals were different- she was disappointing her mom. It's definitely something I can relate to a lot. I wish that arc had had a better conclusion, though. Same as with the whole Santino arc. It was a kind of huge fuss that got resolved too quickly.

On another note, I deeply appreciated how realistic the group of friends were, and how each of them had a pretty well-rounded character arc, that was in tune with the stage of life where they were: they are on the brink of adulthood, realising that childhood is long gone and trying to come to terms with the fact that they haven't the slightest of how adulting even works. And it's frightening, and it sucks- but it's also very much fine, because nobody's born with a "how to life" book under our arms, and we're all making it up as we go.

As for the romantic subplot... I lived for it. It was so nice and sweet and perfectly paced. I liked how we get to see Marnie and Cody work as friends and ease into rooting for the relationship. And the important thing in such a friendship is that the steps, the process, made sense. The whole emotional process was really well developed, on both parts. As for Cody as a character, I do wish we had seen more of him since earlier in the story, because at first his presence was more through what Marnie and others said regarding him and his relationship with Marnie. But eventually, when we got to know him a bit more, I did like him as a character.

On top of everything, this story didn't only involve sports (something that I'm increasingly growing to enjoy reading about), but there was the treatment of Marnie entering (and eventually kicking ass in) a male-dominated area and how the dynamics begin to shift from that starting point. For a story that I thought would be light and fun, there was some interesting takes about some serious shit going on that (no, I'm not going to make a baseball pun) caught me completely off-guard. In a good way.

This was overall a great read (and what a blessing that is, since it was one of my anticipated ones!). Recommended. ...more

This book was super cute. It was definitely YA and very appropriate for young teens.

Marnie was your typical angsty with a side of slightly low self esteem, teen. She loved playing baseball with her friends and I liked that she decided to try out for the boys team. She was able to hold her own in a field dominated by boys and she always stood up for herself. I think that's a very important trait to give an h in a book geared toward a younger audience. I will admit that her actions t**3.5 Stars**

This book was super cute. It was definitely YA and very appropriate for young teens.

Marnie was your typical angsty with a side of slightly low self esteem, teen. She loved playing baseball with her friends and I liked that she decided to try out for the boys team. She was able to hold her own in a field dominated by boys and she always stood up for herself. I think that's a very important trait to give an h in a book geared toward a younger audience. I will admit that her actions toward her friends annoyed me sometimes and the way she handled her feelings toward Cody weren't my favorite. I felt like her decision to not tell Cody about Santino was very immature and didn't really make any sense. That being said, it's not very uncharacteristic of a 17 year old to act that way so I guess given the age and audience, it's not that unrealistic.

Cody was cute. I wanted him to be a little more present and have more of a presence in the book. We didn't really get a whole lot of him and Marnie interacting on a personal basis to really get a good feel of their feelings toward each other. It's basically just all of their friends and family saying how much they like each other. It was an example of a telling not showing situation.

Speaking of family. Marnie's mom really grated on my nerves and her explanation at the end was complete BS. She didn't support Marnie at all and, in my opinion, really dropped the ball at good parenting. No matter how busy you are with work, you should always make time to go watch your kid's games- especially when they are essentially paving the way for other girls. You should be proud of them and want to be there. She was a terrible parent.

Joey and Sara were pretty good secondary characters. I actually really liked Sara and thought she was a fantastic friend. Joey, however, was a jerk. We kept being told that the four of them were best friends, but he acted like Marnie was his mortal enemy and often times went out of his way to be mean to her. You would think when the whole baseball team was against her he would stand up for her. Carrot and Jiro were easily better friends to her than Joey.

Overall, this book was really cute and if you're looking for a clean, fun, YA novel or if you're a fan of Kasie West then this is definitely for you. I absolutely recommend this book.

When a book is said to be perfect for fans of Morgan Matson, I instantly add it to my TBR. It also didn't hurt here that Out of Left Field was giving me Dairy Queen vibes. I had high hopes, and I couldn't wait to dive in!

The result? Out of Left Field left me feeling underwhelmed. I didn't love it nor did I hate it; instead, I felt indifferent.

The premise is what originally hooked me. It screamed girl power, and while I've never been particularly good at sports, I still enjoy reading1.5 stars

When a book is said to be perfect for fans of Morgan Matson, I instantly add it to my TBR. It also didn't hurt here that Out of Left Field was giving me Dairy Queen vibes. I had high hopes, and I couldn't wait to dive in!

The result? Out of Left Field left me feeling underwhelmed. I didn't love it nor did I hate it; instead, I felt indifferent.

The premise is what originally hooked me. It screamed girl power, and while I've never been particularly good at sports, I still enjoy reading about them, especially when some romance is thrown in. However, the execution here wasn't the greatest. In some ways, I felt that Out of Left Field had no real plot; instead, it was felt like a compilation of a week of baseball games and practices with a teensy bit of romance and family drama thrown in. Even at the "big" moment, I wasn't exactly glued to my seat. It felt so incredibly anticlimactic. I felt that I should be pumped, eager to see the end result, but I just couldn't get myself to that level.

Additionally, the characters weren't well developed. I didn't truly care all that much about any of them, and not because they had horrific personalities, but because they had almost no personality. The one that had the most development was Marnie, but even then I felt that it didn't dig much deeper than establishing that she had a bossy, determined personality. It was also hard to root for the characters when I felt that I knew almost nothing about them. Sure, some dramatic reveals were thrown in about Marnie's friends and family, but it was never dug deeper than that.

Overall, Out of Left Field was not the book for me. I wanted to love it, but the plot and characters held me back. I think diehard fans of softball/baseball may enjoy it - there is a lot about the baseball included - but if you're looking for a romantic and empowering sports related book, I would suggest Miranda Kenneally's Hundred Oaks series or Catherine Gilbert Murdock's Dairy Queen instead.

*ARC was provided by the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review*

Marnie use to play softball for the high school team, until during her freshman year she choked bad in the playoffs. This led her to quit, she still loves the game but honestly baseball is so much better. Which is why she does the Saturday neighborhood pick-up games. It helps that her best friend, Cody is the star pitcher for their school. Only, he broke his arm during a game with his arch-nemesis Santino. Cody convinces Marnie to try out of the team and to everyone’s surprise she makes it. TooMarnie use to play softball for the high school team, until during her freshman year she choked bad in the playoffs. This led her to quit, she still loves the game but honestly baseball is so much better. Which is why she does the Saturday neighborhood pick-up games. It helps that her best friend, Cody is the star pitcher for their school. Only, he broke his arm during a game with his arch-nemesis Santino. Cody convinces Marnie to try out of the team and to everyone’s surprise she makes it. Too bad none of the guys are liking it (except for Cody). It doesn’t help that she just found out that Santino is about to become a family member. When did life become so hard?

Marnie is an easygoing character with a lot of pop culture references. She is a confident person who isn’t afraid to stand up for what she believes in. When doubt enters her mind, she finds ways to fight it. Cody as her guy best friend, should be off limits in the love department. But the lines between love and friendship are blurry sometimes. This is one of those times. I like how he is supportive of her decision to try out for the team.

The best thing about this book was the relationships between the four friends. I love how they were there for each other, and yet still ultimately ends up hurting each other as well. Real friends look past the hurt and that is what all four of them do. I wasn't sure at times what was up with Joey (he was kinda a jerk to Marnie) but he does redeem himself. The chemistry developing between Cody and Marnie was adorable to watch, as was the dynamic of Joey and Sara.

Marnie’s family is a mixed bag of supportive and unsupportive. Her daddy and brother are there for her. Her mom not so much, and I really didn’t get it. Especially, since her mom supposedly use to be supportive. Marnie writes it off as her not being girly enough for her mom, but I call bull on that excuse.

Overall, Out of Left Field is an adorable read that will make you smile. It is heavy on the baseball jargon though, to the point where I thought it was excessive. It was fun though to read about a girl who has a love for a male dominate sport.

My Rating 4 out of 5 stars

Favorite Quote There is only one rule for having a ten-year friendship with someone: like-liking is strictly prohibited.

Cute premise, I contrarily enjoyed the love story and the characters' dynamics with each other and kinda loved their friendships. My problem was that I found it very hard to enjoy because some of the small details just didn't add up.

I liked the book, a lot, and don't want the people reading this review to think it's a bad book. It's just if the author had payed slightly more attention to the details, it would've been one of my favorite books.

Note - This is written by a girl who played bOk so...

Cute premise, I contrarily enjoyed the love story and the characters' dynamics with each other and kinda loved their friendships. My problem was that I found it very hard to enjoy because some of the small details just didn't add up.

I liked the book, a lot, and don't want the people reading this review to think it's a bad book. It's just if the author had payed slightly more attention to the details, it would've been one of my favorite books.

Note - This is written by a girl who played baseball for 10 years and just switched to high school softball this year, after playing all preseason with the boys baseball team. So I was pretty much the WORST audience for this book to be anything but perfect. Which, I do believe with just some little things fixed it would've been.

- Baseball technical details. She said this kid was batting cleanup, and then put the pitcher before him in the three hole and the pitcher can't hit. That's literally against all logic and it felt like the baseball plays were just there to create as much drama as possible. Which is great for those who aren't avid fans of the sport, but leaves me frustrated as to what coach would put their worst pitcher third.

- There's a runner on second, ok, and a fly ball to center field. Then suddenly the runner is coming home? I'm sorry but not even Billy Hamilton can tag up two bases on a regulation sized field. Also nobody's trying to take two bases on a base hit, like, ever, which is not a big deal but just seems unlikely from my experience with high school baseball.

- There's other nitpicky stuff like high school regulations prevent a single pitcher from pitching the amount Cody does, anyone who could pitch varsity softball AND baseball would be like... insanely famous, and no self-respecting high school team has only one competent pitcher. A team like that could never be as competitive as Marnie's school supposedly was....more

As someone who was the only girl in a baseball league for years, and who, at age 14, was told by the all-male administration that I wasn't allowed to play anymore and to "go play softball" as if it's the same sport, I LOVE any book featuring girl baseball players, so I was so excited to read this book. (I am also a part-time assistant varsity baseball coach whenever I'm home from university. And I regret that I never tried out in middle or high school, so I'm a big fan of Marnie.)

Marnie's a badaAs someone who was the only girl in a baseball league for years, and who, at age 14, was told by the all-male administration that I wasn't allowed to play anymore and to "go play softball" as if it's the same sport, I LOVE any book featuring girl baseball players, so I was so excited to read this book. (I am also a part-time assistant varsity baseball coach whenever I'm home from university. And I regret that I never tried out in middle or high school, so I'm a big fan of Marnie.)

Marnie's a badass. Yeah, she's stubborn and impulsive and loud-mouthed, but that's me when I play baseball. I love the neighborhood group that plays in the sandlot and am very jealous of their dynamic but mostly of how often they play! Damn, I miss baseball. Like, I miss playing on a team.

Anyway.

I did have trouble suspending my disbelief in regards to the timeline - I believe the whole thing takes place in just one week? Seems rather fast when you consider just how much happens - with the relationships, friendships, etc, but also with Marnie learning sidearm in a day. The interactions with Santino also seemed like they were spread out over weeks, and I was startled when I realized Marnie had met him only a few days before. I also wish there had been more of a resolution with Sara and Joey.

Overall, though, I loved all the baseball aspects. I'm a sucker for YA contemporary, and this didn't disappoint, evidenced by my racing through it in one afternoon. Great spring/summer read!! (Actual rating: 3.75 stars)...more